Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index tumbled on Tuesday, sliding 3.13% to 48,750.38, as sharp declines in the technology sector weighed on market sentiment following steep losses on Wall Street overnight.
Tech-centric names dragged the index lower, with SoftBank Group sliding 5%. Key semiconductor players also posted significant losses, as Tokyo Electron dropped 3.99% and Advantest declined by 2.15%. Electronics component suppliers—particularly those tied to the artificial intelligence sector—also faced selling pressure; leading fiber optic cable manufacturers Fujikura and Sumitomo Electric Industries both saw shares slump by 6%.
Tourism-related shares showed a mixed performance after enduring steep declines in the preceding session, reflecting ongoing uncertainty within the sector, following the feud with China.
The downward momentum in Tokyo mirrors a sell-off in U.S. equities on Monday. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq both closed beneath important technical levels. The pullback came as investors braced for major earnings reports from chipmaker Nvidia and major retailers, alongside anticipation of a delayed U.S. jobs report expected this week.
Over the night, the Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 557.24 points or 1.18%, to finish at 46,590.24. The S&P 500 dropped 61.70 points or 0.92%, ending at 6,672.41, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 192.51 points or 0.84%, to close at 22,708.08.
Nvidia—now the world’s largest company by market capitalization and a central figure in the artificial intelligence rally—declined by 1.9% on Monday. The chip giant is slated to announce its latest quarterly results after the market closes on Wednesday.
